


First Date Questions

by PhoenixRex



Category: Star Wars Legends: The Old Republic (Video Game)
Genre: M/M, Mostly Dialogue, no beta we die, not like anything just die
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-06
Updated: 2020-11-06
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:34:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,771
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27425044
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PhoenixRex/pseuds/PhoenixRex
Summary: In which Jav experiences being a somewhat normal person for about five minutes.
Relationships: Imperial Agent | Cipher Nine/Theron Shan, Male Imperial Agent | Cipher Nine/Theron Shan
Kudos: 18





	First Date Questions

"Tell me about yourself." Jav looks up from his drink to Theron and gives a small, amused smile.

"Theron, you already know me. _Intimately_." He hopes Theron will never get past being flustered by him because he's fairly certain he'll never get tired of getting him flustered. Jav hides his grin - what for him is a grin - behind his drink. They've snagged one of the side rooms in the cantina, made certain there were only two seats available so no one got any ideas about joining them. Theron clears his throat.

"I do, but I don't know the small things. The first date things," He gestures to the cantina at large. "This is the closest we've ever had to a date, which makes it kind of our first date, which is why first date questions."

"I see." Jav can feel the amusement dancing at his lips, not quite a smile, and he knows Theron can see it too, can tell from the faint look of triumph on his face. "I can't say I've ever been on a first date. Enlighten me; what, exactly, is a first date question?"

"We can start easy. What's your favorite color?" Jav leans his elbows on the table, slides his glass from hand to hand while he thinks.

"I'm rather fond of purple." Theron's implants flicker. "Am I boring you already?" He knows he's not.

"I'm not sure I'll ever be bored of you." He almost looks a bit surprised at himself, like he didn't mean to say that aloud. "I'm taking notes. These are important things to know."

"Ah, you're compiling a dossier on me."

"If you want to call it that, sure. I promise, it'll only be accessible to myself."

"If I want to see it?"

"I'm sure we could come up with a suitable information exchange, Cipher."

"I've no doubt of that." Jav wonders idly if anyone else would realize they're flirting rather outrageously, if it's an Intelligence thing, if it's a them thing, before quickly discarding the notion as unimportant. "I presume you have more questions."

"Of course. What's your favorite holovid?"

"I don't believe I've seen any."

"Seriously?"

"I've never had the time nor inclination." The lights on Theron's implants dance.

"Gotta add that to the list of missed experiences."

"When did you start that?" Theron ignores him.

"Next question. Where would you most like to visit or revisit? Not for work or any obligations, just for the hell of it." Jav hums.

"I rather enjoyed Makeb's architecture, but the whole planet is an uninhabitable wasteland now. Not exactly ideal for vacationing. Belsavis was interesting-"

"You know about Belsavis? You've _been_ to Belsavis?"

"-but a prison planet also makes for a poor vacation spot."

"Of course you've been to Belsavis, I shouldn't be surprised."

"Ilum is gorgeous at night, and I believe control of it is no longer contested, but I'm not really a fan of the cold."

"I should have known this wouldn't be a straightforward answer." Jav felt amusement playing at his lips again. Theron was grumbling, but he could tell from the dancing lights of his implants that every word was being recorded for future reference, could see the laughter in his eyes.

"You should have. Never Nar Shaddaa,"

" _Never_."

"Nor Hutta,"

"Not even worth mentioning."

"One can't step foot onto Alderaan without being dragged into politics, which I rather detest,"

"Can't stand 'em."

"Voss is nice. Lovely landscape, interesting culture, the people insular enough not to initiate interaction unless necessary."

"I can work with Voss," Jav can see the moment Theron notices the mischief on his face, sees the answering wariness. He continues, tone unchanged.

"Of course, the matter of having to avoid my widow would put quite a damper on things." Jav sees Theron freeze completely, the lights on his implants stop, and he appears to have even ceased breathing.

"You're married?" His voice is strangled, a bit broken, and Jav knows he went too far. He's terrified he's ruined the one _good_ thing is his life and has never leapt to damage control faster.

"It wasn't real. Both parties made it very clear there were no feelings involved, but I needed an in for my mission and the woman in question assured me it was the only option available. I gave her several opportunities to change her mind and come up with an alternative. It was not something either of us wanted, it was strictly business." Jav thinks he can see the tension melt away ever so slightly from Theron, and the man no longer looks like he's going to bolt at the first opportunity. His voice softens. "Theron, please look at me." He does, doesn't seem to want to. Jav considers retracting his lenses so they can really see each other. Wants to, so he does. He shifts so his back is to the cantina, ignores the years of training, conditioning, instincts screaming at him not to make himself so vulnerable, because he knows that even in this moment with Theron as upset as he is he'll protect him. The fact that nearly everyone in the base would jump to his defense isn't even a second thought because he scarcely needs the first. When he's satisfied no one but Theron can see his face, he retracts the cybernetics, catching, savoring the near inaudible hitch in Theron's breath, same as every other time he lowers this particular defense, over the noise of the cantina purely because he knows to listen for it and his enhanced hearing allows him to do so. Jav knows Theron knows exactly what these individual actions cost him, knows the gravity of the combination is far from lost on him. "Theron. This woman meant nothing to me, nor I to her." Jav slowly raises a hand, rests it on Theron's face when the other man doesn't stop him. "I did not lead her on, I am not cheating on her, and perhaps it helps nothing, but she, and the rest of the galaxy, thinks the person I was is dead. I have it on good authority that she's moved on with her life," A letter she sent to him, a dead man. "We owe nothing to each other now if we ever did." Jav steels himself, cracks his heart open just a little bit wider, allows himself to be that much more vulnerable. "Darling, _you_ are the only person I can honestly say I've ever had romantic feelings for, and I cannot imagine that ever changing." They stare at each other for an interminable moment before Theron leans forward and rests his forehead against Jav's, closes his eyes. Jav feels the heavy blanket of fear lift, breathes easier.

"Okay."

"Okay?"

"Okay." Jav closes his own eyes, revels in this hard-won snapshot of intimacy. Pretends they're alone in his - their - ship for this single instant.

"Okay." The noise of the cantina crashes back down on them, forcing the moment to end, but not ruining it. As if by agreement, they part, Jav's lenses slip back into place, and they move back so neither has their back exposed to the room.

"So." Theron takes a drink. "Not Voss." Jav breathes just that much easier.

"Not Voss." He looks at his empty glass, decides he's already made one bad decision for the night and another drink would only court more. He sets it aside. Taps his finger in thought against the table. "Manaan." He's thankful that Theron's implant lights up again, hopes it means he's still taking notes.

"Manaan? Really?" Jav nods. "Unless I'm missing something, your last trip there wasn't exactly what I'd call a good time." He hums.

"I don't think you're missing anything but my perspective. While it's certainly true that some events got out of hand," Theron snorts, mutters about an understatement. Jav ignores him. "I did meet someone there that I've become rather fond of, despite an unflattering first impression." Theron catches Jav's hand in his, starts playing with his fingers. Jav allows him.

"Your first impression wasn't so bad. You did pretty damn well considering the entire place was crashing to the bottom of the ocean and nearly drowned everyone inside."

"I was talking about you." Theron dons indignance. It's almost convincing.

"Me?" Jav squeezes his hand.

"Yes, you. I was trying to do my job and get everyone possible out alive and some fool kept yelling about time running out as if I was oblivious and deaf."

"That's a weird way to thank me. Is it an Imperial thing? Cultural difference?"

"If trusting someone to do their job adequately with minimal interference is an 'Imperial thing' and a cultural difference, than yes. I suppose it is." Theron starts to speak, to defend himself, but Jav continues. "That's why I'd like to go back to Manaan. To make more pleasant memories with the person I grew unexpectedly attached to." The lights on Theron's implant slow to a stop, and his entire face softens. "If I can convince him to eat his words about not being attracted to me, so much the better." He laughs like it was startled out of him.

"Damn Imp. You always gotta show me up, huh?"

"I admit, it's one of my favorite pastimes." That bare flicker of a smile again. "I can't help that you make it so easy for me."

"I can get on board with a vacation to Manaan someday." Jav feels his almost smile turn a bit sad.

"Do you have a list for that, too?"

"Vacation?"

"No. 'Someday'. We've certainly made a lot of plans for Someday, I'd hate for some of them to get lost in the works."

"I promise," Theron's voice is serious in a way it was rarely is outside of work, but still soft in that way it only is for them. "That we will reach Someday. We will reach Someday, and we'll manage to swing all our plans and every single new one we come up with until then." Jav feels the word take on a new definition, one just for the two of them. Theron's implant starts lighting up again and Jav huffs out a soft laugh.

"You're making that list now, aren't you?"

"I don't want any plans to get lost in the works either." He feels cracked open and raw, in an unexpected way. He feels _seen_. He feels scared. He wants to hide away with this ridiculous, unbelievable, insightful fashion disaster of a man in the Phantom until Someday comes to them.

"Any other first date questions for me?"

"Not right now. We'll get to them someday." It's a promise.

**Author's Note:**

> This hasn't been touched since it was first written which means it needs editing but I feel like shit and it's update day so into the void that is the internet it goes.


End file.
